The More Things Change
by Klenotka
Summary: Highlander: The Raven story. Nick returns after 15 years, only to find his old teacher dead. To find a murderous Immortal, who doesn t follow the rules, he is forced to work with Amanda again...Nick, Amanda, Joe are in this. One OC, but only in flashbacks
1. Chapter 1

_First chapter was beta read, the following ones weren´t. As a non-native English speaker, I tried my best to avoid mistakes but nobody is perfect._

_London, 2015_

Joe Dawson just came back from town when he heard the soft knock on his door. Only a few people knew where he really lived and it made him slightly nervous. As a former Watcher, he certainly made his deal of enemies during his long career. But then he smiled at his own paranoia. A killer would hardly knock on the door, waiting for him to open.

"Hello, Joe." Dawson made a surprised noise and it took him a few seconds to recognize the man standing before him. Even though Nick Wolfe hadn't changed at all since he last saw him, it took him a while to tie a name to the face.

"Nick? Well, that´s a surprise….eh, why don´t you come in?" He met Nick before he became an immortal, and a few times after that but Joe would have never thought Nick would actually come to see him. Joe knew, naturally, how that happened, because he was still with the Watchers at the time.

"How did you find me?" asked Joe. He moved to London two years ago because he wanted to be left alone for a change. Europe was crowded with Immortals and Watchers but somehow, London was peaceful enough for Joe to blend in. He opened a small bookstore and was happy to meet his regular customers a few times a day but he was grateful for the peace he had now, but he lived in different part of town, using a different address for business contacts.

"Joe, I am a detective, what do you think?" Nick was still Nick. He smiled with a warm smile, sparkle in his eyes. But there was something else behind those greenish eyes of his. Something "immortal" was written in his face. Something that only someone who knew about immortals, could see. Nick saw and did things he has never done before his immortality. The Game had an impact on him and obviously, taking a Quickening of some older immortal must have had an effect on him. But still, he didn´t look like a threat any more than he did before. It was an irony, that despite being immortal, he looked somehow older and more tired.

"Joe, I need your help and I wasn't sure to whom I should turn to." Joe nodded. He spoke to Nick a few times on the phone, was in contact via email, and used to help Nick with some of his cases. That was before Nick disappeared five years ago. He was very good at losing his Watcher but he couldn´t have prevented the Watchers´ presence entirely. Joe knew that Nick, despite his relatively young immortality, made a name for himself simply because he was "famous" to some of the immortals before he actually became one of them. And being a private detective for immortal matters certainly helped him to build his image as well.

"I think I know what it is, Nick. I am sorry for your loss." Joe stated sadly, honestly.

"Well, it is not only my loss. Derek was six hundred years old, Joe. He was respected, did the same job as me, but he has been doing it for over a hundred and fifty years. I don´t know any immortal, and I mean even some psycho head hunters, who would want him dead. It just doesn´t make sense. I don´t think this was an immortal fight. It was a murder. A mortal killed him. That's why I am here." Joe was shocked by that statement. Why would a mortal want to kill a man who was basically invisible for mortal people? Watchers couldn´t afford to lose someone like him. There were few untouchable Immortals – Nick fell to that category a few years ago but there were some hundreds of years old immortals who wanted just to be left alone. Nick´s former teacher, Derek Smith, was one of those examples. He did a good job keeping peace between mortals and immortals, covered tracks of the immortals, helped them to disappear, with new identities and money…he was the person any immortal visited after 20+ years when he or she needed to change their identities. The only mortals who knew about his existence were Watchers. Joe refused to believe it.

"Nick, you don´t think that some watcher killed him! Watchers are a different organisation now. You know it; you helped building the bridge between us. We have to work together in order to keep the secret. With modern technologies, when is more and more difficult to disappear, it is vital for us to be allies, not enemies. This would destroy the trust we tried to build these past ten years!"

"Maybe that´s what someone wants. Not everybody agrees with this arrangement. Joe, I KNOW he was killed by a mortal, I saw it! He called me because of some case he was working on but refused to tell me what it was. There was no quickening and his body was still…warm." Nick´s voice broke but after he took a deep breath, forced himself to continue.

"I heard noise from the corridor and there was some guy, I couldn´t see his face, running away with a knife. A knife, Joe, for heaven's sake. He escaped before I was able to move because I was seriously stunned. And Joe, it was Derek's other office, here in London. The one in the church. It was a holy ground. If an immortal would have killed him there, we would certainly know by now. No. He was killed by a knife, by a mortal. A mortal, who knew exactly how to kill him. If the killer was an immortal, I would be able to find him. But like this…I have no idea where to start. Derek didn´t leave any clues behind about this case of his." Joe´s shock was even bigger but any anger he felt from the accusation was forgotten instantly because Nick was obviously heart broken. It was a sad view of the young man. Nick was, in fact, barely 48 years old but still looked about 30, which was the age when he became an couldn´t blame him. Nick went through hell on his own in these past few years. He never asked to be an immortal and the worst part about it was that, unlike the other immortals, he actually had a chance to choose if he wanted to die or live forever. But the choice wasn´t offered to him just because someone cared too much for him….Amanda…Joe wondered where she was and if Nick has already forgiven her. But he certainly didn´t want to ask Nick now.

"Look, Nick, I can try some of my contacts. I honestly can´t believe that any Watcher would have anything to do with this but some of them may know something. I can contact Derek´s Watcher and ask him what case Derek was working on. It´s against the rules but, damn the rules, Derek was a good man and you are a friend. I'm happy to help."

Nick smiled gratefully at the older man. Yes, Joe was still older than him and he could see the passage of time in his face. Nick hated himself for forgetting how it was to be an ordinary mortal being, who is getting older naturally and eventually dies. He hasn´t been an immortal for that long…only some sixteen painful years. Not long enough to be considered an important immortal but obviously old enough to forget that there are still people around him who can die from natural causes. And he was afraid that Joe will be the first on his list of "people who died in my lifetime" and who will turn into some old memory in another century or two. He sighed and stood up.

"Thank you Joe, I appreciate it. Call me if you find anything." Nick gave Joe a small paper with an address of his hotel and his mobile phone number. He wasn´t sure if he wanted to stay in London or not, but it was probably better for him to stay out of sight for a while. Especially if the killer thought that Nick was in contact with Derek and knew something.

"Wait, Nick, I….well, where have you been the past five years?"

"I had to clear my mind. I stayed in Spain for a while but you guys can be so damn persistent that I decided to go to a little more deserted places. I travelled through Australia for a about a year, then went to Asia, visited Japan, China…I met some interesting people."

"Yeah, I know about China. One of our Watchers saw you there and reported back. And I know that you still stayed in touch with Derek. The last thing I knew, you worked for one private security agency in Hong Kong."

"That´s right." Nick smiled secretively, letting Joe know that he enjoyed his time under the radar. It was one of the few things he enjoyed in this existence – thinking of new ways how not to be followed. He understood their job, but he didn´t like being watched as a lab rat.

"OK, I understand. Now that you are back, they will probably assign a new Watcher to you. You know that, right?" Nicked shrugged and nodded. He was tired of running and he was wishing he could see Derek again. A return to old times, like when he first met him

_Paris, 1999_

"Nick, you need to calm down…Amanda did what she thought was the best. And honestly, I would have done the same thing." Nick looked angrily at Liam, who was the sea of calm itself as usual.

"You knew it, too. You are an older immortal. Why didn´t you tell me?!" Nick didn´t want to yell at Liam, who he trusted and thought of as a best friends. But he was had been an immortal for only few hours and the shock was still too big to grasp.

"I couldn´t. It is something very uncertain. You can be pre-immortal for the rest of your life and still die from an old age. What would you do if you knew you cannot die? As I know you, it would have made you reckless and you would get shot anyway. And with your job, it was just a matter of time. You are only angry with Amanda because she was the one to pull the trigger."

"Liam…I met a few immortal scumbags during this past year to be sure that I don´t want to be one of them! They killed my wife. I've seen what long immortality does to people – some of them can´t even feel anything!" He didn´t want to use the word "us" because he couldn´t swallow the thought that immortal means "us" for him now.

"I came here because I didn´t know what to do. I know that the moment I walk out of here, I can put a target on my head, yelling at everybody that they can kill me. I am not ready for this, Liam. I don´t want to kill people. I can´t even use a damn sword, all I can do is to shoot and hope I will be long gone before the opponent comes back to life. And you from all people know it´s not exactly the most honourable thing to do." Nick looked like unhappiness itself. With his head in his hands, he began to shake He also felt Liam´s hand on his shoulder.

"I was ready to die, Liam. It´s been only a month since Lauren died and I thought: ´OK, this is the way it is supposed to be´." Liam looked at him sympathetically.

"I know, Nick. But I want you to know that I was kinda…ready for this. Don´t be mad!" Nick´s anger came and was gone at the same time. He just couldn´t be angry with Liam.

"You need a teacher." added Liam simply. Nick nodded. He knew that it worked like that but he didn´t want Amanda to teach him anything. She did enough already.

He looked hopefully at Liam, who just smiled and shook his head. "No, Nick, I can´t be your teacher. I am a priest and not the most skilful swordsman, which is basically the only thing you need to learn. You are fit enough to take care of yourself but I am a man of peace and I don´t want to teach you how to fight. I have been avoiding The Game for years but I can imagine it is not possible for you and you need to learn to respect its rules." Nick almost laughed. It´s had been only two weeks since he was pointing a gun at Sean, yelling at Liam that he was no immortal so he could ignore the rules. If only he knew…

"I have a friend, Derek Smith. He never really had a student but he is six hundred years old, give or take, and he agreed to take you as a student if it ever come to that. It was good to be ready." Nick was shocked. He should be grateful but he hated being manipulated.

"So not only did you not tell me, you had this perfect plan ready?"

"Just in case, Nick. I know you think that Amanda, and probably even me, betrayed you, but after you learn the rules, you will understand. It wasn´t easy for me to lie to you, Nick. Trust me." Nick DID trust him, with his life. That was probably the reason he came here. And he came to Liam in hope that he will tell him what to do.

"Liam, I think I need…to be alone for a while. To accept this, to think about it. Can I stay for a while?"

"Of course, take your time. But don´t leave the holy ground, it´s safer that way. And by the way your teacher will be here in the morning. You can sleep in one of the back rooms, there is plenty of food in the kitchen and I think you can find some soap and towel in the bathroom as well." Liam´s secretive smile made Nick nervous but he desperately needed a rest. Coming back from dead was a very exhausting thing to do, especially when he was shot AND poisoned before.

It was about 10:00 A.M when he finally woke up. For a moment, Nick forgot where he was and what happened…it didn´t last long. But he felt really good. It was like some new energy was given to his body. Looking into a mirror surprised him. His scars, including the most recent from the shootout in Paris a few months ago, were gone. His torso was perfect, as were his hair or and face. He never thought about the looks but he had to admit, he liked what he saw. And then he heard a knock on the door.

"Nick? Are you up? There is someone waiting for you in the kitchen." Liam´s voice was muffled by the heavy wooden door so Nick almost yelled back his positive answer.

When he came to the kitchen, an older man sat at the table, sipping a coffee. He raised his head and looked at Nick with a look that made the younger immortal nervous. He knew that look. Nick used it in his police practice when he knew everything about the suspect that refused to talk. He swallowed and tried to stay calm. His morning ease was gone; now all he could feel was an anxiety and the constant, unpleasant buzz in his head that was, as he knew from Amanda, a sign of a presence of another immortal. Liam and this guy, obviously. It took Nick some time to block the buzzing noise, but he managed to do that after a few seconds of concentration.

"So, you are Nick Wolfe. I am glad to finally meet you in person. Liam spoke very highly of you. My name is Derek Smith." Nick shook his hand, still uncertain what to say.

"I am sorry, I am a little nervous. This is all new to me. Well, from an immortal perspective anyway." To his relief, Derek smiled with a spark of understanding in his eyes.

"Of course it is new to you. That´s why you need a teacher. I usually don´t take students because I have enough work to do but I have been watching you for a while and I can say is that Liam was right. I read your materials and your work is impressive."

"My…my materials?" They had materials?  
"No, not like that! I am a private detective, you know. I work for immortals, help them with everything they need. I often track immortals because not everybody respects the law, as you know. I am the first one to call when you need to get out of a prison and disappear. But I also try to get the justice done. So I sometimes have to work with Watchers…it´s very interesting and I could use a hand since I just decided to open an office in London. You can work for me and be a student at the same time. What do you say?" Nick´s expression must have been very funny because Derek fought with the urge to start laughing.

"I take it as a yes?" Nick couldn´t believe it. He didn´t know if he should be angry with Liam or kiss his hands because Nick knew that without him, he would be probably dead within a week. Now, when he had a time to sleep and think about it, he was able to at least start accepting his current status.

"Nick, nothing will change…except, of course, you will have to be part of The Game. It is how it works. But you can keep doing your job while you will train."

"I am…I don´t…I have to tell my boss, Bert Meyers, that I quit. He won´t be too happy about it." Bert! How the hell is he going to explain this to him? He could tell him about the immortality but Bert didn´t believe Amanda, and Nick was sure that Bert wouldn´t believe him either.

"We can do it on our way to my office. I live there, it´s a big building; you will have your own apartment. Really, Nick, I can´t imagine anyone better than you to work with me. So, what do you think?" with a smile, Derek offered Nick his hand and he accepted it. At that moment, seemingly from nowhere, Liam appeared in the kitchen.

"You son of a bitch." Said Nick to him, more jokingly than with a real anger. He was grateful, but also confused and depressed that they played with him like that. But he knew he should be thanking to Liam for this. And he did.

After Nick began his training under Derek, he was able to forget about Amanda and also ignore her calls and messages. Although she knew where he was, she didn´t try to contact him in person. He also worked for Derek, for almost ten years and the relationship from student/teacher changed into a strong friendship. It was sometimes around 2010 when Nick felt the need to move on and Derek didn´t try to stop him. Derek knew that a change in the life of an immortal is necessary. Little did Nick know that next time when he saw his teacher again, it will be in the form of a headless body in his office…

_London, 2015_

Derek´s office was a mess. Even with his hundred and fifty years of experience leading an office, he wasn´t too tidy. He preferred to have his papers in stacks on the table, even after everything went into computers, he still liked to keep everything on paper. Nick remembered when he first entered his Paris office, he almost immediately hit a stack of books. He did it for Derek, it was the least he could do – to help him in running the office, kept everything in computers, ran the administrative, and travelled between London and Paris to help with cases. He taught Nick how to get new IDs, passports, how to declare somebody dead and move all the assets from the "dead" person to his new ID. Nick felt that it will be, somehow, his job now. He doubted he would be able to do it as long as Derek did, considering he ran away after only ten years. But he had a lot of time to think on his travels and was certain of it now. Just because he is an immortal doesn´t mean he should stop doing what he was good at. He can still help people, even though these people are immortals and need to fake their identities. Derek taught him not only to use a sword and to respect and live by the rules but also that he has to protect the secret and try to protect immortals who just want to live their lives and who never asked to be immortals – just like him.

Nick started digging in Derek´s drawers, then looked into papers and his computer. There wasn´t anything unusual. A couple of unfinished jobs but he will take care of those later. Nothing suggested that someone would want to kill Derek for some obvious reason.

The office was on holy ground, in the church, so it was so quiet around that Nick jumped slightly when his phone suddenly rang. He kept changing his phone ringer, because he was terribly indecisive. For now, he had a simple ringing of few tones and he was glad he didn´t use the Metallica song he had before. He was certain it would given him a heart attack - temporary, but still a heart-attack.

"Hello?" answered to an unknown caller.

"Nick, it´s Joe. I have some information for you." His voice sounded weak, because there wasn´t a very good signal through the thick walls. Nick went out to the corridor and then out to the graveyard under Derek´s windows. Nick just shook his head in amusement. Derek had always a weakness for morbid things.

"Yes, Joe, I can hear you now. What did you find?"

"Not much but I still managed to get information from the chief Watcher who looks after London these days. She is a student of mine and owed me a favour. I hope you are right about this Nick because I had to use all leverages and power I still had and it won´t be so easy for me to get the information next time. I am going to send you Derek´s Watcher materials from the last days. He wasn´t there when Derek died. We are Watchers, not stalkers after all but he knew something was happening when he didn´t see Derek leaving in the evening. But he noticed you so it may be a problem. You probably have someone watching you by now. So watch your head."

"I will, thank you Joe. Is there something specific I should look at?" Joe hesitated for a moment, as if he wasn´t too keen to tell Nick everything.

"There is one thing….the Watcher saw Cory Raines leaving Derek´s office the evening before he was killed." Nick tried to remember who from those dozens of immortals he met during his investigations was Cory Raines.

"Wait, *that* Cory Raines? He used to work with Amanda. I met him once when I worked at on one case about eight years ago. He was an annoying arrogant moron, but a murderer? I don´t believe it."

"Well, that´s what Derek's Watcher said. Anyway, everything is in the materials I sent you. Nick, Cory may not be the one who wanted Derek dead but someone around him could have. He meets all kinds of scumbags and is always in trouble. I hate to tell you this but he was very close with Amanda and she may know where he is. If Cory knows about Derek´s death and had something to do with it, then he is probably halfway to Canada right now."

"I will try my contacts first, thanks Joe." answered Nick sharply.

"No problem. Call me if you need something else." Joe wasn´t obviously surprised at all because he expected exactly this kind of reaction.

"I will come to visit soon, we can go to dinner or something." Said Nick in softer tone this time.

"I would like that. See you then. And Nick…be careful." The silent "click" sounded on the other side of the phone and Nick suddenly felt very alone. He went back inside, looked into the mail and began reading the materials Joe sent him. When he went through the long corridor later, he remembered that the offices in Paris were very similar. Unfortunately, after Nick left, Derek had to close his Paris office and moved his entire agenda to London. Nick was willing to hire him some assistant, even from the immortals but his teacher refused to trust anybody but Nick and himself. Nick came back into the office and noticed a closet at the right side of the door. He didn´t see it before and after he opened it, his heart missed a beat. Derek´s sword collection. He was very proud to have some of the rarest pieces in the world and Nick felt his own sword under the coat. His sword was almost 500 years old. It was a heavy sword, a little impractical for someone who wouldn´t be fit enough to carry it but Nick loved it. It was a gift from a teacher to the student, after about ten months of training. It was a simple sword, there wasn´t any color or gold or precious stones in it but that was exactly the reason why he loved it. And there was also Derek´s favourite sword in the closet. That was strange. Nick knew that Derek wasn´t a prophet and fought when he had to, never went out without this one. The others were just for training or to look at but he would never leave without his sword. Nick took it out of the closet and saw that it was as sharp as ever…he remembered how painful it was to be stabbed by that blade…

_Paris, 2000_

Coming back to life was painful. Nick took a deep breath after his heart was pierced by a sharp blade of Derek´s sword. His lungs hurt, as if they forgot how to breathe. He was lying on the ground, Derek standing over him, with a smug smile on his face. He hated this expression of his. The older immortal was shorter than Nick, looked like he was in his early fifties, but in a perfect shape, with movements of a cat. Nick, with his height and weight was no match for him.

"Comfy?" asked Derek after Nick opened his eyes.

"You are not even trying Nick. You have to twist your right leg and concentrate your weight on a your left foot. It´s simple." Nick pushed away a hand Derek offered him and tried to stand up on his own. He managed to do so after ten seconds of fight with the urge to vomit.

"Simple for you. I am telling you, it doesn´t work for me. And the rapier is not right for me either. It´s too light. It feels like it should break any minute!" It was frustrating. Derek´s methods were unorthodox and painful. He didn´t hesitate to "kill" Nick to prove his point and forced the young ex-cop to defend himself because he knew the threat was, more or less, real. But Nick just couldn´t find the right sword in Derek´s rich collection and he wasn´t used to the rapier.

"Nick, you still fight as a fighter you used to be. You were a great boxer but you can´t fight with another immortal at close range. You need to stay out of his grasp but to be close enough to strike with a sword. You have to stay in the length of his sword, if is it easier to understand."

"You told me that already but I have been taught to fight like this for years. I can´t help it. My instincts just react that way." Derek knew Nick was right in this. He also knew that Nick´s height and weight could be a problem because it probably meant more problems to coordinate his movements. And then he showed the practical example of a face/palm move.

"Nick, I am an idiot!" Nick didn´t really know how to react because he never heard Smith telling this. Derek was on his way to the office before Nick could say anything. So he just stood there, patiently waited for Derek to return.

Derek went back to his office and when he returned, he carried a big case, obviously hiding a sword.

"I have never used this sword. No wonder I forgot. It is impractical sword for me because it is a little longer and it is also very heavy. But I think it could bring a balance to your sword fight. You don´t need a rapier or a normal sword. You need a real weapon, as you are used to. Try it." Nick looked at the beautiful sword that was revealed after Smith opened the case. It was long, very simple, but to Nick, it looked perfect. He took it into his right hand and realized that Derek was right. It was heavy but somehow it felt as a part of Nick´s hand instantly. He fell for that sword in the moment he saw it.

Derek nodded in agreement. "Yes, I knew it. I thought I lost it after I moved here but I just put it into the closet and forgot about it. I remember I took it from another immortal centuries ago. I am not sure who made it or who was the original owner but I think it has a new owner now. What did I tell you about a sword?"

"It has to be a part of me, as a prolonged hand, always ready to save my life." Nick kept staring at the sword and tried few movements with it, seemingly without any effort.

"Take it. It´s yours." Derek smiled when he saw a smitten expression at Nick´s face.

"Derek, I can´t possibly…it is terribly expensive piece of an antique…"

"Do you want to live or not?" Smith´s expression hardened, with an intense and caring feeling running behind his eyes.

"Yes." Nick was sure about it now. Yes, he wanted to live. He was ready to fight. Nick was surprised how a simple thing as a sword can change everything so quickly. But he felt an energy coming from the sword, as if it was eager to fight any enemy.

"Then take it. Let´s try that move again." said Derek simply and attacked with the same energy as he did three hours ago when they began.

_London, 2015_

Nick remembered how he ended up on the ground that day again, even with a new sword. But he learnt and few days later, he defeated Derek. It was probably the most precious gift anybody ever gave to him…except…no... he still didn´t think his immortality was a gift.

And Derek´s sword hidden in the closet still bothered him. The first thing every immortal learns is that he needs to carry a sword and have *one* sword that will be a part of him. Smith knew that, of course and he had his sword with all the time, even in the office. Nick put the sword back and sat to the computer. His password was still working, and he had to smile to that it. Derek probably believed that Nick´s "vacation" was only temporary and he would eventually return. And he was probably right. Nick didn´t want to see a work of his mentor unfinished and refused to close his office. He should continue in his work. But first, he has to find the killer. Nick wasn´t sure how to find him. He couldn´t go to the police – there was no body after all – watchers took care about that. And even if the killer was a mortal, he knew about immortals so it was a pure immortal business. He should probably kill that son of a bitch. Nick was playing with that thought for a while but he wasn´t sure if he could do it. The last time he killed an immortal man for revenge was because of Lauren´s death. And it was Derek who taught him that revenge was the best way how to get killed. So, what would Derek want him to do? Solve the crime. Yes, he needs to solve this. He needs to find why his former teacher contacted him and why it got him killed.

Nick still waited because the computer was super-slow. It was an old machine, bought sometimes in 1998. Nick had to smile again. It was so typical for his friend to use this old equipment. Even when Nick worked for him, Derek refused to listen to him because he relied on old things. He bought his computer only because all data disappeared from papers and went into computer files. They had to be online but Smith kept using paper files anywhere he could. Nick started to appreciate it eventually because to write something down on the paper was often more practical and also more permanent.

There weren´t many useful information in Joe´s mail – the watcher´s notes contained Derek´s daily programme. Nick knew that his teacher used to be one of the most boring immortals. He rarely left his office and apartment because his work was there. His clients were coming to him. His last fight and Quickening was almost four years ago after some young head hunter surprised him in a deserted alley. In fact, Nick´s number of Quickenings was significantly higher than his teacher´s in last ten years. That frightened Nick but what was he supposed to do? He was the one chasing bad guys instead of Derek and he met few psychos at his travels. But Smith taught him well and Nick didn´t take it as a necessary evil but accepted it as a part of his life.

The last entry was from the night Derek died. And there it was again. Cory Raines´ was the last person leaving his office before the detective was killed. Nick knew Cory, he was a royal pain in the ass but he would never send someone to kill anybody. It was all a big fun for him. Nick remembered at their encounter very well because he ended up with all his bones broken after Cory pushed him out of the 20th floor.

Cory was probably in some trouble and maybe needed his help – or attracted the attention to Derek somehow. So, it is the start. He needs to find Cory Raines.

But if he had some unfinished job, it could mean he was still in London. It was time to play detective again, Nick decided. He still had his contacts, within both, mortal and immortal worlds and now he should use them. He turned off the computer and decided to go to the first place he knew.

Outside, a stranger was watching windows of the office.


	2. Chapter 2

_Paris_

Amanda was bored. The Sanctuary ran smoothly, she didn´t have to solve any problem for days. When Nick used to be around, she at least helped with his cases. Nick…oh, Nick. Sixteen years should be as a drop in the sea for her but somehow, she felt those years without him were the emptiest she ever lived. He changed her. Amanda knew that she was usually surrounded by men who only wanted something from her and she wanted something from them. Nobody really cared about her and when she got married, it was for pure business reasons and he was insane.

She knew where Nick was but it was up to him to contact her and he never did it. Amanda still felt a disappointment, and was angry with Nick and with herself. She thought she did a good thing but when she came to visit Liam few days after Nick left, he explained it to her. All Amanda wanted to do was apologize, even though it wouldn´t probably change much. But she at least knew Nick was OK. And he did pretty well on his own. Sanctuary was basically a meeting place for all immortals, a neutral zone, and she heard stuff. Nick became one of the most respected immortals thanks to his work for Derek Smith and also thanks to his previous reputation. And there were people who wanted his head. She sighed and looked into her bills again. This honest living was boring but even stealing wasn´t such a fun anymore. She tried some job here and there but it wasn´t the same. _I hate you, Nick, for making me this person, _she thought. _Well, then we are even,_ replied another thought in Nick´s voice. Yes, Amanda knew that Nick would probably think the same.

A silent cough came from the door along with an immortal buzz and when she turned, ready to start yelling that she didn´t want to be disturbed, Liam´s wide smile stopped her.

"Liam! It is so nice to see you!" she ran to him and hugged him which was very unusual.

"What did I do?" Amanda blushed a little. She was in a terrible mood and to see Liam just made her day. Except Bert, there was nobody who she could talk to and even Bert was gone because his work was in the States and he didn´t want to get involved in an immortal business. He sold his share of the club to her few years ago and went back home so he was visiting her only occasionally. She thought that her being immortal scared him of a little but she couldn´t be sure.

"Nothing, I just…I am glad you are here."

"Well, in that case, so am I. I have some news Amanda." His face was serious again and she suddenly thought "Nick"

"Yes, it´s about Nick but don´t worry, he is OK." He knew her too well.

"What is it?" she asked, offering him a chair at the bar.

"He is back in Europe. He came back after Derek Smith was killed." Amanda sat on the bar chair as well and looked worried.

"It is a terrible thing. I don´t understand how could anyone be so idiotic and kill Smith. He was one of the best and one of the good guys. He was helping everybody. I can´t imagine how hard it must be for Nick to lose a teacher and a friend like that…awful."

"Amanda, there is more. There is a rumour going round that it was actually a mortal who killed him and Nick is now trying to find who did it. He practically turned London upside down but so far, no luck. But I heard one thing and you could help with it. I know, I know," he quickly interrupted Amanda´s protest, "but listen, I think this is it. You could really help Nick now and it would be a perfect time for you to finally meet and forgive each other. The last person leaving Smith´s office was Cory."

"How do you know?" Amanda was more surprised that Liam knew about Cory than that her former companion was involved.

"I have my own sources." Smiled Liam and looked up.

"Yeah, sure. Keep your secrets." Amanda knew that Liam, priest or not, still had his secrets and many immortals were coming to his church every day.

"If Cory got into trouble, I doubt he stayed in England. In fact, I think I know where he could be." Amanda went to the bar and pulled out a small note book, full of numbers. She had contacts at everybody, in case of emergency, including Cory.

"I shouldn´t interfere. If Nick is on this, we would meet sooner or later."

"And you don´t want to meet him because…?"

"Oh, come on, Liam. We talked about it like hundred times. He hates me."

"Amanda, he doesn´t hate you. I think he understands it now. I spoke to him…well, it´s been a while but I think he really accepted who he is. You both are just stubborn and refuse to talk first. And as you said, Derek Smith was a good man and Nick´s teacher. If you don´t get involved now, when do you want to get in touch with Nick? In the next century? You know how immortality changes relationships. Yours with Nick is already changed but it isn´t completely destroyed. Go, call Cory and tell him to contact Nick. You have nothing to lose." His voice was calm, as usual.

"I hate you, Liam, you know that?" She said with a smile.

"Yes, I know you do. And that´s another thing you and Nick have in common." Before she got a chance to ask him what he meant, he was already gone.

After she dialed the mobile number, nobody seemed to be ready to answer and just as Amanda wanted to give up, a reluctant voice in the phone answered: "Cory Raines."

_London_

Nick was disappointed. He hated when someone was smarter in disappearing than him. He knew that Raines wouldn´t stick around but he hoped that someone could at least tell him where he was.

Frustrated, he went back to his hotel, not willing to stay in Derek´s place. He didn´t want to stay there yet. It was too full of memories, very old memories, not just for him. Office and apartment of his dead teacher were full of ancient things, papers, books, as if Derek himself was frozen in time somewhere between two centuries. Nick used to love that, now it all reminded him how much he missed Derek. He didn´t have much time to think about it before, but now, wandering through the city, he could tell he was almost desperate. When he left Derek five years ago, he quit everything. His job, his friends, he even stopped replying to Liam´s letters for a while. What did he think? He couldn´t spend the eternity alone. He knew what the immortality did to people and he didn´t want to become one of those lunatic psycho immortal men. Thinking of lunatics….Nick stood at the bridge, it was almost midnight and there was nobody around. Except some immortal Nick felt coming. He hated the buzz surrounding the immortal presence because it was as bad as a migraine. With time, he learnt to control it, feel it, even pinpoint the direction. But it was dark and he didn´t see anyone.

Not willing to show his surprise or reveal his position, he stopped and turned back. Not the smartest tactic but he wasn´t in a mood for fight. He was also very tired and losing his head was the last thing he needed right now. _Oh, shit_…

"Hey, pal." Said that man, looking younger than Nick, but it didn´t mean anything. He also looked very drunk which was weird since immortal had big problems to get drunk. Maybe he was high, it would be a better explanation.

"Look…_pal_…I am not in the mood. I don´t want to fight you so just….go away, please."

"Not a chance. I am exactly in the mood for a fight." His hand with a sword was shaking but Nick knew that it could be just a tactic. He really, really didn´t want to do this right now. He didn´t sleep for a day and he was also very hungry. Not a good combination.

"I have more important things to do." Nick tried to skip around his soon-to-be opponent but that guy stood in his way.

"Fight or die, it is the way it is. I am Zachary Black."

"Nick Wolfe. Pleasure to meet you…er, actually…" Nick didn´t even bother to finish the sentence when he pulled the sword out of his coat. The bridge wasn´t too well chosen place, anybody could see them. But as the sound of sword fight was carried over the Thames and its echo was heard everywhere, nobody seemed to bother. There wasn´t anyone around. Maybe because it was cold and this wasn´t exactly the most favourite part of London, it was like someone told even homeless and drug addicts to stay in their holes. Nick´s exhaustion was gone with a first hit of the sword. His opponent, whoever he was, was very skilful but he obviously didn´t have Nick´s physical power. He also fought with a rapier, which was a sword Nick refused so many years ago. His heavy sword was a big advantage, as was his physical domination.

Black realized that and tried to get sneaky. He kicked Nick into leg and stabbed him into the shoulder. Nick yelled out with pain but managed to cover himself. If this guy wanted to play dirty, so be it. In one moment, when Black hesitated for a second, Nick took the advantage and stabbed him. Black dropped the sword and fell to his knees. And Nick, as the challenged one, stroke directly onto Black´s neck. The following quickening was a little painful since Black probably really was on drugs and his energy was variable. As adrenaline and the energy from quickening – that also broke the glass in lamps all around the bridge – went away from Nick´s body, the exhaustion was back, along with a pain in his shoulder.

Nick thought he could try to scare Watchers who will come to pick up the body, or at least scare his Watcher who probably was close but he wasn´t in the mood for fun. Let them think he is a nice, unaware immortal who doesn´t know about them for a change.

He was grateful that his hotel wasn´t too far away. Nick picked a cheap hotel, to avoid attention, but it obviously didn´t work. He locked the door of his room, because he wouldn´t survive another fight and fell asleep before he managed to take of his clothes and shoes.

_Pari_s

Amanda waited for Cory in her club. Only an assurance that it is a holy ground made him to come there and meet her face to face. Amanda hasn´t seen him for almost twenty years and she was happy about it. She liked her honest life. It was a little boring but she was beginning to think that for the first time in her twelve hundred years, her life had some meaning. The Sanctuary was a holy ground where many immortals could meet in peace. They were coming there for information or just to enjoy themselves without the fear that someone´s going to kill them behind the nearest corner. Her customers were almost exclusively immortals and it was also a reason why Bert sold his share to her and went back to States. He didn´t want to have anything to do with it and she could hardly blame him. Meyers didn´t know Nick was immortal but Nick´s life changed because of her and she knew that Bert´s would be different, too. He wasn´t pre-immortal, that she knew for sure. But he could get killed very easily and Amanda wouldn´t bare to lose him as well. They became good friends during those years but everything was just too much for him. So here she was, without any close friends, lonely and desperately looking for a purpose. Even after living that long, she still didn´t find a sense of her life. She thought for a moment to call Duncan but she heard he was in a stable relationship and Amanda didn´t want to destroy it. She used to be an annoying life changer for him. Or she could call Richie. He was probably somewhere with his bike, riding through Asia or Southern America. But it wasn´t too good idea either. Richie and Duncan weren´t on best terms after Duncan tried to kill Richie almost twenty years ago. So, it will take some time for both of them to heal and she would probably just destroy it again.

The buzz of an immortal presence brought her back from the memory lane. Cory looked still the same, except his eyes were a little wilder and he seemed to be scared to death.

"Cory!" Amanda didn´t know if she should hug him or be angry but he looked like a lost puppy so she chose the first option. He started to shake after she hugged him.

"Cory, what is it? I have never seen you like this."

"It was hell to get here from London. He has spies everywhere, Amanda. I am….you are looking at the biggest immortal idiot ever."

"He? Who is he? What are you talking about? Tell me that Nick isn´t in danger." Cory seemed offended for two seconds by the mention of a former detective´s name but it passed as quickly as it came.

"He is. I didn´t know he was coming back because I would have probably warned him." After Amanda gave him "yeah, sure" look, he shook his head.

"OK, so probably not but just because London is a hot ground right now. Smith knew that and he contacted me because that bastard has to be stopped. I didn´t know who he was when he hired me!" Cory was on the verge of panic. Amanda knew him for a century and she never saw him behave like this. Everything was a game for him so if something could freak Cory out like that, it was serious.

"Cory, calm down and tell me everything from the beginning." She took him to the bar and gave him some whiskey that disappeared in Raines´ mouth faster than she could tell him to drink.

"OK, OK, I am fine now. Are you sure this place is safe?" he looked around cautiously, with eyes fixed on the door.

"Yes, this is a holy ground. And there is a security at the door that won´t let in anyone who wasn´t invited." _Or isn´t Nick_, she thought.

"Well…there is this guy, his name is Edward James Richards. He used to be a nasty businessman. And when I say businessman, I mean in all kinds of business. He was in drugs, arms dealing, prostitution, name it and he did it all. But he was also a big friend of world biggest governments because he was selling to both sides, he was giving them information so they could get rid of his opponents. So they were leaving him alone until someone, don´t ask me who, ordered a hit on him. He was killed last year. Some assassin shot him. But suddenly, he is back in business and nobody knows why. Well, _we_ know why and maybe some few people, too."

"He became immortal? How old is he?"

"I don´t know. The problem with him is that he was super rich and super sick psycho before, imagine him now. He doesn´t care about rules. He doesn´t even fight honourably. He has a bunch of murderers working for him, who he sends to get rid of his competition. And it means immortals. He gets his quickening in the way that his gorillas beat some poor immortal to death or on the verge of death, bring him or her to Richards and he cuts their heads. Just like that. No fight, no rules. He has an access to everything so he probably met some older immortals who told him about rules. So he avoids a holy ground, goes with his gorillas everywhere and uses his power. And when he needs to get rid of some powerful immortal, he sends his men to kill that poor soul. That´s how Smith was killed. He was too close but also too skilful fighter to be just caught by Derek´s men. You know, he is smart because he chooses those who are not too strong or who are not willing to fight. If he should fight, only man to man fight, he would lose. I mean, imagine that this psycho would really be the only one who should stay. It would be…the end."

"And how did you get involved with him?" Amanda´s thoughts flew across the La Manche to Nick, where he was, probably unprotected, digging into this. Problems aside, she had to call him as soon as possible.

"I…well, I stole something from his collection. It was a tiny statue in one of his houses. I almost lost my head over this but I managed to save myself by…lying. I told him that I know someone who has a database of all the immortals and knows also about him. I gave him Smith´s name because it was the first name that came to my mind. I was sent to persuade Smith to meet Richards. Smith basically kicked me out of his office. And the next thing I knew, he was dead, with his student behind my back. Wolfe is one persistent son of a bitch, you know that?"

"Yes, I know and you should be grateful for him following you because you would be probably already dead by now. Does Richards know about watchers?"

"Who?" Amanda realized that not every immortal knew about watchers and bit her tongue.

"Never mind. Look, you can stay here. I think this is the safest place for you right now. I am going to call Joe to London so he can warn Nick. I have no idea where Nick is but I bet Joe knows."

"Joe who?"

"Ah, never mind." Amanda went to one security guy, told him to take care about Cory and then decided to call Joe from her office. She was just hoping it wasn´t too late for Nick or anybody else.


End file.
